Gifts

We are collecting gifts for the orphanage staff, taxi drivers, guest house staff, and other persons who assist us in our adoption. This is not mandatory but it shows our appreciation for their work. Some examples are t-shirts, hats, ties for men. Earrings, hair barrettes, shampoos, soaps, lotions, pencils, paper, crayon, chalk, calenders, postcards, pens, key chains to name a few. We have started collecting a few donations like key chains and paper and crayons.

We are told they there will be beggars all around us. We are collecting granola bars and candies and balloons to give out to the beggars on the street. I cannot imagine a world where the children are begging for food. It is so sad that in other parts of the world the parents can't afford food so the children's only hope for food is what they find on the streets, which I can't imagine is very clean.

I feel like we are always broke but we always have all the food we need or want and we always have a warm house to sleep in. We are truly blessed in this world.

adoption costs

We have invested $ 17,500 into our adoption. When I added it all up I had to re add it. It sounds like a lot of money, no wonder why we are broke. And we are not done yet. To travel to Ethiopia and back we are looking at spending $5000-$6000 dollars. This all depends on when we go, what day of the week we go. And once we are in Ethiopia we have to pay for housing which can vary. If we stay at the guest house they provide it costs from $30-$100 per day, or there are hotels we can stay which range from $100-$200 dollars per day. Then there are meals to consider which range from cheap to very expensive. We are told not to drink any water that isn't bottled, don't eat fresh fruits and vegetables because they are not safe due to the water, no salads for me. We are advised to eat only fresh hot prepared meals. We are also in charge of paying for taxi fare which can cost up to $170. Phones or faxes are $18 birr per minute for foreign calls and $2 birr per minute for local calls. Birr is their money in Ethiopia and the exchange is to every 11 birr is the same as 1 dollar.

Got in contact with another mother who is adopting through CAFAC. She phoned me and we talked for a long time. We are both in the same stage of the adoption. We got our referral about a month before hers. We are both waiting for a court date. It is so nice to talk to someone who has gone through this before (she has adopted from China). It is nice to know that our kids are in the same orphanage and are playing together. We might be travel buddies. We have requested that there be a group of us when we travel because I don't want to be the only adopted parent when we go. It is kind of reassuring that there will be someone else that will speak our language.

Went to Prince Albert last night for supper and to do some shopping at Wal-mart. On our way home it started to rain and the closer we got to home the more it rained. This morning it was very icy.

Neil was working on our addition today. Put in the new garden doors and do they ever look nice. Next week he will be working on the kitchen. I am excited to get the kitchen reno going. Hopefully by next week they will be in. How exciting.

Holly and Gracie are feeling better, back to bugging and terrorizing each other. We ordered a computer game from school and we got it the other day. Gracie bugged until we played it. It took a while to save it on the computer and register everything. She is very interested in computers. Since school started she has been really interested in the computer. So finally we started playing the game and er and Holly took turns. When Holly's turn was done she immediately fell to the floor and started crying until it was her turn again. How fun.

Took Holly to the doctor today. Last night she hardly slept at all. We were up lots with her. She had a fever, her ear was in pain, and she has no appetite. The doctor said she has a bad ear infection, and a cold. They put her on antibiotics for her ear. She just laid around today, wining and crying, poor girl. She had a 3 hour nap today. Woke up feeling better, until it was time to have supper. She was excited and wanted to eat, but her stomach was bothering her so she couldn't eat anything. Yesterday Gracie and Holly were invited to a birthday party, but Gracie wasn't feeling well, so we didn't go. She had the stomach flu and slept most of the morning. Today she is much better but Holly is sick. Hopefully tomorrow I will have 2 health kids again.

When we were at the doctor's office we needed to get the doctor to write out a prescription for malaria medication, for when we go to Ethiopia. We will need to take this medicine for 45 days and we need to take it 2 days before we go travel.

we have to make an appointment to get an update on our Hep A&B vaccinations that we took a month ago. We both took 5 needles each, and cost $1000. The expenses keep coming and coming.

Here is a poem I have been working on, It reflects my feelings about our 2 newest additions to the Gaboury's:

adoption:

I am so in love with two
precious gifts from god who,
are scared and brave
They will save
Me, for my heart breaks
Every day that we are not together it makes
me proud that
I am your mother, how great that
will sound. I promice to love you
and care for you
as if I gave birth
Your are so worth
All of this waiting game, for
I will treat you the same, I pour
my heart out to you,
And I would go to the end of the world
To protect you.

Our house is under construction. We are adding a bedroom and a dinning room. Where the garage door is, that is where the bedroom will be. We are also extending our kitchen as it is very small. Feeding 4 kids would be a nightmare in our tiny kitchen. All of our kitchen cabinets are currently in our basement, so it will be nice to have them in so I can have my basement back. We are also re doing our 2 bathrooms in our house, along with changing all the windows and doors and siding. What a lot of work.

Just got a e-mail from Karen from our adoption agency. Just got word back that all our documents are in order and they have filed for a court date. I don't know a date yet, but hopefully I will hear with in the next few weeks. After we pass court our kids are legally ours. This is a big step. Then we just have to wait for all our documents to be ready to pick up our kids. This will take 6-8 weeks after we pass court.

Had a dream last night about our Ethiopian daughter. We were in a dark room and all we did was hold each other and hug. I kept telling her how much I love her. That was the extent to my dream. That is the first dream I have had about our kids.

Talked to CAFAC today. I am donating 30 dollars to the orphanage where my kids are in. With this money they will be purchasing gifts for the kids and food for a Christmas dinner. To most of these kids this is the first present they will receive. My kids are going to be spoiled and showered with presents. I have been collecting numerous things for when they come home. I have purchased clothes, books, crayons and toys. I can't wait to bring them home so we can start our family together.

CAFAC also mention to me that our court date probably will not be until the first or second week in December. It just seems to be dragging on,and on. Yes it is great knowing who our kids are, but this wait is just as hard as waiting for a referral.Christmas is a hard time to be away from our kids, when I want them here so badly. By next Christmas we will be a family of 6. Our kids will be learning a new language, ajusting to a new culture, and a new family. It is a new beginning.

Gracie got her pictures back from school the other day. They are so beautiful. My little girl is sure growing up WAY to fast.

On Friday the 13th we all got our H1N1 vaccinations here in Spiritwood at the bowling arena. We mentioned the shots to Gracie and Holly the day before, wanting to prepare them for it, but it backfired on us. Gracie began crying hysterically. She wasn't getting one. She forgot our whole discussion the next day. When it was time to go she didn't say anything. When she saw the needle she began panicking so I held her while the nurse quickly gave her the needle and it was over. Same for Holly. She saw her big sister crying, which made her cry. It was over very quickly. Neil and I both got the needles too. It didn't even hurt. The arm was sore that night we all took Tylenol and went to bed.


On Saturday the 14th we all went to Mom and Dad's for supper. Laura and Craig were out with their kids Meagan and Kyle. They are so adorable. The girls played, fought, laughed, and cried. It was a good day. Mom and Dad had invited their neighbor, Don (who bought Mom and Dad's old house), over for supper. Neil and Craig went hunting and Dad was off working in the shop. So who was the first person to show up for supper. Well Don of course. The only guy in a room full of women. He brought out the alcohol and we were all drinking and having a good time sharing stories.


Today marks 2 years since we began our adoption. We singed our papers saying that we pick CAFAC as our adoption Facilitator and we want to move forward, and we sent our fees off to CAFAC. I always pictures us home with our kids by now.

Adoption poem

This saturday will be 2 years since we started our adoption. I can't believe it will be 2 years. I cannot wait till I get the phone call saying we can go pick up our son and daughter. Some days it seems as if this will never happen and in other ways it feels like "oh my god, I am not ready, there is so much to do and buy." There are beds to buy, dressers to buy, kitchen reno to start, bedrooms to paint, windows to put in, siding to put on, dining room to construct, and the list of course goes on and on. My kids keep me really busy that I don't have much time to sit around and think of all of this that has to be done before spring. I am estimating that we will go fly to Ethiopia in April or May.

I am writing a poem for our kids and here is one of them:
I am so in love with you
I stare at your picture and
I am amazed I get this
Wonderful gift of love
Seeing your smile makes
Me smile and I cannot wait
Till the day I
Get to hold you In my arms
You are a true blessing
Without you my family would
Not be complete
So thank you.

Today Gracie had school, slept in didn't wake up until 8:30am. It is a good thing that we are only a few feet away from school. Once I was up, it didn't take
Gracie long to get ready. I had to feed her breakfast, get her dressed, make her lunch, do her hair, brush her teeth, and wash her hands and face. All within 15 minutes. They are starting show and tell at school and every day there is something different that they have to bring. Well this morning I was in a rush, I forgot all about show and tell, but Gracie reminded me of this when she got home. She was almost in tears telling me that she was the ONLY one who didn't bring anything. I felt so horrible that I forgot.

Holly woke up this morning coughing and all stuffed up, but no fever. About a week ago I had to take Holly to the doctor because she had a constant fever, wouldn't eat, had no energy, and weak, and hard breathing because she was stuffed up. The doctor listened to her breathing and put her on antibiotics, and Asama medication right away, no questions asked. My first fears was of H1N1, of course. Finally after a couple of days on meds she was feeling better. I hope she is not coming down with something again. Tomorrow is the H1N1 vaccinations and because we missed the first one since Holly was sick I hope she doesn't get sick before tomorrow. I will feel more at ease when every body gets vaccinated. I feel myself worrying about it and I am not the worrying type. I can feel gray hairs arising.

Gracie Gaboury

Gracie is our first born. She is either laughing and having a good time or she is upset and crying about something. She is very moody and sensitive. I love her laughter, she has such the hardiest laughter. I love her views on life, she seems to think that she knows it all and tells us we are doing it wrong, and how to do it HER way, which is always right of course.

She loves her movies and always wants to put the movie in herself. She thinks she knows how to run the computer, better than me of course. She loves books and is very interested in writting words. She seems to think if she puts a few words together they should make a word. She is too smart for her own good. She is always up for hugs and kisses, no matter what the situation is. I love my little princess to pieces. She is so sweet and caring. She can't wait to grow up and be just like her mommy. I cherish every moment we spend together as a family.

Holly Gaboury

Holly was born on May 17,
2006. She tries so hard to keep up with her big sister. What ever
Gracie is doing, Holly wants to do it first. I love the love they give to each other. She reminds me of me when I was a kid. They will hold hands and laugh and sing, then they will wrestle and fight, then they will hug again. Holly loves books, crayons, and loves to draw. When ever Gracie is away at school, Holly is lost. She paces around looking for trouble. Holly loves to make you laugh. If she knows you are laughing at her she gets really excited and does it over and over again until it is not longer funny. She cannot wait to grow up and be just like her mommy. I am so proud. She gives me so much joy. Her hugs will knock you down, so look out. Holly loves to dress up like a princess, but doesn't always act like one. If she is wearing pants, she wants a skirt. If she is wearing a skirt she wants to wear pants. She likes to test my Patience. She is a good kid and I love her with all my heart, I can't imagine life without her.

Halloween

Halloween was cold and windy. It fell on a saturday this year. We were not sure what time the kids would start coming, but we were prepared to give out alot of candy. We only got about 14 kids come. We have a lot of left over candy. When we go to Ethiopia to get our kids I am going to hand out candy to the kids on the streets.

We are very excited to be the proud parents of 4 wonderfully beautiful children. I feel really blessed to be able to adopt from Ethiopia. This is our story, it may be boring at times, but really interesting at other times. We have a five year old girl named Gracie and a 3 year old girl named Holly. We first decided to adopt in 2003. We were currently looking after foster kids at the time. The kids would come and go and we knew that we wanted something permanent. We started our home study in 2003. We got pregnant and had to put the adoption on hold. We then decided to start our family and stopped being foster parents and focus all of our attention on our new family. 22 months later we had our second child. I am diabetic and the pregnancy was very hard on my body (numbness in my feet and hands for months after giving birth). I was told by my doctor's that I shouldn't have another baby. Right after my second pregnancy I wanted to have another baby. Feeling the way I did, I knew this was not an option. So we began looking into international adoption. At first I didn't know if we could afford it, but we looked into it more carefully and decided this was what we really wanted, and we couldn't put a price on our happiness.



We Began our adoption in November 2007. That is when we signed the forms and sent them to CAFAC to start our adoption. We knew at that time adoptions were taking about 24 months to complete and we wanted our kids to be close in age so we thought this was the best choice. Our dossier was sent to Ethiopia in June of 2008. It took 15 months shy of 1 day to get the call that we have been waiting,which seemed like for ever. I just talked to CAFAC a week before to check up and make sure that they haven't forgot about us. They told me that we would likely be waiting 18 months plus. We were approved for 1 child under 18 months or siblings 0-5 years. On September 8, 2009 our social worker from Prince Albert contacted me and told me that they have a referral for me. I was shocked beyond belief. My heart began to flutter and I felt like crying. He told me to go check my computer and go aver all the information that they sent me and they were going to phone me tomorrow to see what we thought. I immediately went to the computer. It took me some time but I got all the information. We are proud parents of a 6 year old girl(December 27, 2003) and a 3 year old boy (August 10, 2006). I immediately phoned my husband and of course I couldn't reach him. The biggest news and I couldn't reach him no where. So I text him and then he phones me right back. I told him. My family was so excited for us. Since then we have signed the acceptance papers, paid the fees, finished the immigration. I hold a picture in my purse that I show to complete strangers. Sometimes I get so excited and I tell people that we are adopting from Ethiopia people are shocked and don't know what to say. I forget that not all people are as excited as we are.

On November 3, 2009 we got an update on our kids. It has been 2 months since we got our referral. They have both grew a lot. They both shot up 3 cm, and have both gained 2kg. The new picture that we got was breath taking. They are both smiling and happy, quite a difference from the first pictures. Hopefully in the next few weeks we will hear of a court date.